How to Draw Tutorials

If you want to help your students fill their paper, try this bear drawing. Make sure though to begin with the two center guide lines in place. They may be folded, or drawn, they just make a big difference when students are deciding where their lines need to be. You’ll be surprised … Read More

Joan Miro (1893–1983) was a Spanish painter who made very child like paintings. He often used some very simple shapes that students can easily draw and rearrange to make their own Surrealist painting. Pacon tissue paper that bleeds will add some irregular color and yarn adds a dimensional touch at the end. … Read More

Here is an older student adaptation of my popular Abstract Face project. It still has simple features that fill the face, but allows for some personalization with hair. I think it might make a good early self portrait project for 3rd, 4th and 5th graders as it bypasses all the fussy eye … Read More

My afterschool students have drawn an abstract rooster before, but not one that is a little more realistic. I made this tutorial to break down the steps for them. • View and download Rooster Tutorial … Read More

Many children have a natural tendency to draw small, so I like to direct them in simple shapes that must touch the sides of the paper. I’ve used this drawing with tempera paint, but thought I’d also post a watercolor version that includes colorful crayon lines and patterns. • View and download … Read More

I think a monkey tutorial is long overdue, especially as their faces are really made of some simple, symmetrical shapes that are easy to draw in steps. Have fun! • View and download Monkey PDF Tutorial

Edward Hopper (1882 – 1967) was a prominent American realist painter. He was a skilled watercolorist who is now famous for his spare urban and rural scenes. I’ve made a simple drawing and painting tutorial that resembles his Lighthouse Hill painting. • View and download Edward Hopper PDF Tutorial

I’ve used this approach for drawing and painting the Statue of Liberty for years, and even kinders amaze me with how well they do. Just make sure to start with the guide lines shown on the tutorial, as they help keep the head in scale to the page. I also pre-mix the … Read More

For the students who find they really like to draw houses, here’s how to draw one with an Asian influence. The curvy roof lines make it a lot of fun, if you ask me. • View and download Asian House Tutorial

It’s fun to tie drawing lessons into current movies, if you can. Here’s one way to draw a young looking Captain America, that will most likely work for 2nd grade or so on up. • View and download Captain America Tutorial

Sometimes you just have to add a little pop culture to your lessons. At least that’s what a few of my students have been asking for. Here’s my take on how to draw this pretty popular young character, Elsa. • View and Download Elsa Tutorial

The big eyes on this turtle help make him (or her!) pretty cute. I believe this tutorial is best for maybe 2nd grade on up, but then again there are always some pretty amazing kinder and 1st graders who still surprise me every week. • View and Download PDF Cartoon Tutorial

Here’s a simplified version of my Statue of Liberty tutorial, which I tried out with my first graders last week. I believe the ideal range might be 2nd on up, but every class is different of course. • View and download Statue of Liberty Tutorial

This rocket may be a little on the old-timey side, but a good place to start if you are interested in outer space drawing. Besides, every rocket needs a window so you can draw yourself inside, right? • View and download Rocket Tutorial

The dolphin is my school mascot, so I guess I’m overdue in making a tutorial for him … or her. The many subtle curves of this creature are a little tricky for really young artists, but watching and following the guide lines should get you off to a good start. • View … Read More

The only thing cuter than a koala is a koala and a baby. This drawing may look pretty detailed, but it’s really just one shape drawn in two sizes. • View and download Koala Tutorial 1. Draw koalas as shown in pencil. 2. Trace with a black marker. 3. Color drawing with … Read More

How do you make a cute cat drawing even cuter? Add a little bird on top, of course. • View and download Bird on Cat Tutorial 1. Make drawing as shown in tutorial. 2. Trace the art with a black marker. 3. Color in with crayons. Original Drawing credit: Hip Heart Studio … Read More

Today’s drawing class covered rockets in outer space. I just love the bold energy of this beautiful picture drawn by a little kinder named Ellie. The shapes and colors are all right on, and she even added her own sun. A pdf tutorial will be posted soon.

I’ve updated My King Tut Tutorial to include a bit more detail, and am posting it in my new PDF format. Oil pastels shown here make for a rich gold color, but metallic gold paint is very pretty too. • View and download King Tut Tutorial

I loved the farm drawings I found over at the Becker Middle School blog, so I turned one of them into a how to draw for my kids. The map like quality really captured their imagination and helped them make some very creative landscapes. • View and download Draw a Farm Tutorial

The United States Capitol is among the most architecturally impressive buildings in the nation. It has housed the meeting chambers of the House of Representatives and the Senate for two centuries. I’ve made a tutorial that includes graph paper to help students align all of its beautiful features. • View and download … Read More

Here’s what my Drawing Class students are doing tomorrow after school. I think it will work well because it has some simple symmetry going on, which is what I look for in choosing a new project. • View and download Cartoon Dog Tutorial

For students that may be studying US history right now, here’s some aid in drawing the US Capitol. Starting with grid paper and having a finished drawing to refer to will help students get started. • View and download Grid Paper 1. A horizontal ground line is drawn near the bottom of … Read More

Here is a very simple but very cute way to draw a polar bear. I actually pre-drew the light pencil guide lines for my students today, and I think it was key in having all their bears turn out really well. • View and download Polar Bear Tutorial

Here is a pretty simple way to draw a cow, starting with just some very familiar shapes. This one was done with crayon and watercolor, but white tempera paint on blue paper would look great too. •View and download How to Draw a Cow

This is a good project for young artists because the basket is symmetrical, and the apples are easy to layer. If you can, try adding brown and yellow crayon lines to the basket before painting with watercolor for a bit of extra texture. • View and download Bushel of Apples Tutorial

Romero Britto was born in Recife, Brazil in 1963. He grew up with eight brothers and sisters in a modest home. He used newspapers, cardboard or any scraps that he could find to paint his artwork. Today he is is an internationally renowned pop artist. This tutorial shows how to draw a … Read More

It turns out that a young Ornithomimus only had “dino fuzz”, while the adults grew actual feathers. How cool is that? To download my pdf tutorial file, just click on the link below. • Ornithomimus Tutorial Download

Mastodons are an extinct group of mammal species, closely related to elephants. They look a lot like mammoths, they just have shorter legs, a longer body and more muscles. • View and download Mastodon Tutorial

Here’s a fun way to draw a simple scarecrow face, and it’s easy enough for even most kinders. Don’t skip the crayon details though as they add some nice bumpy texture to the painting. • View and download Scarecrow Tutorial

Technically speaking, I learned that a Plesiosaurus is often mistakenly referred to as a dinosaur, when in fact it is a prehistoric marine reptile, which lived at the same time as the dinosaurs. Now there’s some trivia to stump your friends with. • View and download Plesiosaurus Tutorial

Before you master drawing a flying dragon, you might want to try to draw a sitting one. This one is a little different with easy doglike feet instead of the complicated claw ones. • View and download Sitting Dragon Tutorial

Dragon heads can get rather complicated, what with all the horns and spikes and things. I made this drawing in an effort to simplify it as much as possible, without losing cool dragon features. • View and download Purple Dragon Head Tutorial

The Ankylosaurus was a big dinosaur that featured huge plates of body armor to protect itself from attackers. Follow my tutorial to draw one like you see here. • View and download Ankylosaurus Tutorial

My students have often asked me how to draw a dragon, so I put together this tutorial. I think it’s only fair to add a disclaimer that irregular curvy lines are trickier to draw than straight symmetrical ones. So if your young child struggles with this, I would praise their efforts and … Read More

Did you know that the Spinosaurus was larger than the Tyrannosaurus Rex and may have been the largest carnivorous (meat eating) dinosaur ever? Here’s how to draw one of these creatures. • View and download Spinosaurus Tutorial

Tyrannosaurus Rex is possibly the most well known dinosaur due to its huge size, ferocious nature and regular appearances in movies. I’ve made a tutorial that creates a pretty realistic looking animal, while keeping shapes as simple as possible. • View and download T-Rex Tutorial

Drawing the Statue of Liberty is a great way to learn about it, but it’s not the most easy shape to draw. I have seen lots of students do much better than expected when they have clear lines to refer to (as opposed to a photo) and a grid to give them … Read More

Here’s one way to draw a Diplodocus, or Long Neck, if you are a Land Before Time fan. It’s the best way I know to fill the paper with one of the world’s l-o-n-g-e-s-t animals. • View and download Diplodocus Tutorial

Here’s a simple way to draw a coiled snake. To finish him off, try using a rubbing plate or something similar to create some good old fashioned crayon texture. • View and download Coiled Snake Tutorial

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, I’ve made a tutorial of my Shamrock project. If you can draw lines and hearts, then you can make this beautiful painting in honor of the holiday. Just save a few dollars for a gold paint marker because they really add a special touch.

I found this simple whale drawing to work especially well with younger elementary students, as in kinder through 2nd grade. One of my favorite new media combinations is to have students trace their drawing with a Sharpie, add crayon patterns and decorations, and then cover all with liquid watercolor paint. I think … Read More

Knowing how to draw an airplane can come in handy for many different reasons. This one has worked well for my students over the years. It’s simple, yet still has some dimension to it. • View and download Airplane Tutorial

Students often ask me how to draw a horse, and I have yet to find a book or internet example that seems appropriate for these kids. Most find it tricky to “build” with circles, like some approaches I have seen. I simplified this horse to just concentrate its outline, and then a … Read More

Studying England? Learning how to tell time? Learn about both by drawing Big Ben and then choosing a specific time for the hands of your clock. Who says art projects can’t support other studies? Not me. 1. For extra straight lines, try drawing this clock on 1/4 grid paper. Follow the steps … Read More

Here’s a chubby little penguin to draw, decked out in a cute hat and scarf. I think the symmetrical shapes are good practice for young artists, and the hat and scarf allow for some fun personification.

Poinsettia flowers are well known for their red and green foliage, and used in many a Christmas display. I’ve broken down the steps to draw a large one, which could easily be tied into a Georgia O’Keeffe lesson.

Need an elf to go with your Santa drawing? Here’s a pretty cute little guy to draw (which could easily be turned into a girl, by the way.) My sample above was colored with Twistable Crayola crayons. They seem to have a little more color than the paper Crayola crayons for some … Read More

There is something just too adorable about Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. I’ve tried to simplify him as much as possible, but want to add a friendly recommendation. My experience has been that curves are the hardest thing for beginners to draw, and this picture is full of them. Starting with drawing … Read More

The Grinch’s very mischievous face is easy to draw if you break him down into steps. I’m going to see if I can play my favorite “You’re a mean one, Mr. Grinch” song when my students draw him next week.

This geometric approach to making a rooster worked well for a collage, so I recycled the idea for a painting. The half circle, square and triangles make it easy for young artists, like kinder and first grade. 1. Draw the rooster as shown above with a pencil. 2. After step 7, trace … Read More

I drew this Mayflower ship with my students last fall and was happy to see so many make beautifully detailed ships. Try drawing on kraft paper from the scrapbook dept. at Michaels and those sails just pop off the page. • View and download Mayflower Tutorial

I wanted to do a lesson on drawing a squirrel, and found absolutely no internet help. Everything was either too cartoony or way too advanced. Here’s my solution, a nice easy profile that is based on realism, but simple enough for children to draw. Click HERE for a print friendly version of … Read More

Here’s another way to draw a fox, this time from the side. Please keep in mind that these tutorials are meant to bring confidence to beginning artists. If students want to continue to learn, there is nothing like looking at a photo of a fox and drawing from real life.

I’ve reformatted my “How to Draw A Pumpkin Tutorial” into my new pdf format. Pumpkins are still my very favorite fall project to draw, with all those lovely dimensional lines and orange color. • View and download my Pumpkin Tutorial

This little teddy bear was drawn a few years ago by a first grader named Gian, who has since moved out of town. It’s one of those student drawings that I think has about 1000% more personality than my sample drawing.